Paul Pogba teases Manchester United return as fans beg Juventus star not to join Real Madrid and Barcelona

Pogba posted a picture of himself while playing for United on his Instagram page prompting over 1,000 messages from United fans begging him to move back to the club

Jack de Menezes
Friday 15 January 2016 12:04 GMT
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Paul Pogba posted a picture on his Instagram page of himself in a Manchester United shirt
Paul Pogba posted a picture on his Instagram page of himself in a Manchester United shirt (Instagram/@paulpogba)

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Manchester United fans have been teased in an Instragram post by their former youth player Paul Pogba, with supporters pleading with the Juventus midfielder to come back to the club after leaving three-and-a-half years ago.

Pogba is one of the most sought-after midfielders in world football with clubs such as Real Madrid and Barcelona joining United in the hunt to sign him, should he leave the Italian league champions. The Frenchman appears to be happy to remain in Turin until the summer at least, although Real Madrid’s imminent transfer ban has led to reports that an emergency bid could be made by the Spanish side before the 1 February transfer deadline.

The 22-year-old attended the Ballon d’Or ceremony on Monday where he was named in the FifPro World XI of the year, while he also posed for pictures with all three Ballon d’Or nominees in Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar and eventual winner Lionel Messi.

However, it is a different picture on his Instagram page that has got United fans begging for him to return to Old Trafford. Pogba posted a picture from his days with the Premier League side as part of the Instagram trend ‘Throwback Thursday’, with the midfielder wearing United’s kit and holding a trophy following an under-18 tournament in Italy.

He included the caption: “Throwback Thursday My first tournament in Italy #tbt.”

 

A photo posted by Paul Labile Pogba (@paulpogba) on

 

A photo posted by Paul Labile Pogba (@paulpogba) on

 

A photo posted by Paul Labile Pogba (@paulpogba) on

 

A photo posted by Paul Labile Pogba (@paulpogba) on

Over 1,000 comments were left on the picture within 24 hours, with a number of United fans pleading for him to return to his former club. One supporter said “Once a red always a red!”, while another adding “come back to Old Trafford please @paulpogba”.

However, it was not all one-way traffic in trying to urge the France international into a return, with another United fan telling him: “It’s a shame you never understood what that badge means”.

Pogba’s agent, Mino Raiola, admitted that the player will assess his options at the end of the season, with the expectation that he will move to Spain with Barcelona currently favourites to sign him.

“We'll see what Barca's project is, and what Paul's project is,” Raiola told RMC Sport this week. “All doors are open to all clubs.

“For now, the young man decided last summer to stay for a minimum of one year at Juventus. We should always respect the will of a player when he chooses with his heart.”

January Transfer window - completed deals

The belief that Pogba will head to Spain stems from his admission at the Ballon d’Or ceremony that he would love to play with either Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo, though Real will need to act swiftly to sign Pogba or hope that their appeal against the Fifa-imposed transfer ban is successful after it was ruled they had breached transfer regulations, meaning they will not be able to register any new signings in the summer of next year’s January transfer window.

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